5 Known Bug Out Dangers

There are a lot of fears and concerns when it comes to bugging out. What if you forgot something in your bug out bag? What if you run out of gas? What if you didn’t pack enough seasonal clothes? Or, what if we run into a dangerous situation? These are all valid concerns to consider and if you haven’t properly planned your bug out scenario, chances are you could forget an important detail and put yourself into danger.

Each of us want our bug out plans and bug out route to be iron clad. That said, there some dangers to consider when it comes to bugging out to keep in mind when making plans.

Physical limitations or injury. If the proverbial S hits the F, and we are bugging out by foot, then we will see a lot of serious injuries, and even deaths from people making unaccustomed physical demands on their bodies. A lot of us are going to be using muscles we forgot we had. Our bodies will be under enormous cardiovascular stress. If you haven’t physically trained for this scenario, then you will not evacuate as successfully as you planned.

Running out of resources (i.e., fuel, food, water). If you have not properly planned your food rations for a bug out situation, do not have the necessary equipment to filter water, or to right gear, then you will run out of supplies and be left to the mercy of the other evacuees around you. Many preppers think they can pack a high calorie Datrex bar and think it will sustain them for 3 days. Read more about bug out meals and the nutrition you will need to make this arduous trek.

Roads may be impassable. This could be due to damage, heavily congested from other evacuees trying to make their way out of the city, blocked by national guard, or worse lawless looters that want what you have. There are a lot of “ifs” in this type of danger if you are bugging out by vehicle. If the roads are blocked, then you are stuck where you are and are supply trucks may not be coming to resupply the grocery store shelves.

Weather may be life threatening. When you plan on a bug out situation, you have to plan for surviving the elements. If you are not properly prepared for them, you risk your health. Extreme heat and cold elements can cause a lot of health issues. Educate yourself on this issue!

Ill prepared evacuees. Sadly, those who are ill-equipped to handle the magnitude of the disaster will feel justified in taking what doesn’t belong to them in order to support their survival. During the mass evacuation of Hurricane Rita, many evacuees discussed the fear they had sitting idle in their car and suspicious people walking by looking into their cars. In a situation such as this, it would be very easy for unprepared individuals to take survival items. As the disaster lags on, they could begin attacking cars who trying to make it out of the city. To go a step further with this danger, roads can be very dangerous when hordes of evacuees are making the mass exodus out of the cities. This is another reason to leave population dense areas as soon as you possibly can.

Keep these dangers in mind when planning your evac route and always have your bug out bags packed and ready to go because you never know when an emergency will arise at a moments notice.

Tess Pennington is the author of The Prepper’s Blueprint, a comprehensive guide that uses real-life scenarios to help you prepare for any disaster. Because a crisis rarely stops with a triggering event the aftermath can spiral, having the capacity to cripple our normal ways of life. The well-rounded, multi-layered approach outlined in the Blueprint helps you make sense of a wide array of preparedness concepts through easily digestible action items and supply lists.

Tess is also the author of the highly rated Prepper’s Cookbook, which helps you to create a plan for stocking, organizing and maintaining a proper emergency food supply and includes over 300 recipes for nutritious, delicious, life-saving meals.

Visit her web site at ReadyNutrition.com for an extensive compilation of free information on preparedness, homesteading, and healthy living.

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